Adjustable door frame



Jan. 7, 1969 R. s. cuNE 3,420,002.

ADJUSTABLE DOOR FRAME Filed May 5; 1 967 .INVENTOR.

ROBERT S. Cums.

EMRZ mgm-wmw United States Patent 5 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSUREThis invention relates to adjustable door frames which are adjustablefor varying wall thickness, which variations are always present alongthe edge of the wall opening. This frame includes a plurality ofrelatively short backing plates spaced along at least one edge of thewall opening and having a series of transversely spaced, longitudinallyextending ratchet teeth and a pair of trim strips, one mounted on thebacking plate and having a hook-shape portion projecting from thebacking plate and returning toward the backing plate, all as viewed insection. The other trim strip includes a longitudinal gripping edgewhich is forced between the one trim strip and the plates and grips oneof the series of ratchet teeth on the backing plate. The other trimstrip is urged into gripping engagement by the hook-shaped portion ofthe one trim strip. The hooked-shaped portion also acts as a door stop.The one trim strip is mortised at the backing plates to receive thehinges so each hinge rests on a backing plate, and the hinge fastenersextend through the backing plate into the wall surface securely tosupport the door.

Brief summary of the invention Briefly, this invention relates to anadjustable door frame which is adjustable over a wide range of thicknessfor the ever present variations in wall thicknesses, in which the doorhinges are tied directly to the wall, in which no screws are showing onthe trim or face, and in which the only surface screws are under theedge of the door when the door is closed.

Generally speaking, when a wall is provided with a door opening,variations in thickness of the wall invariably occur around the wallopening. Generally, these variations are in a range of plus or minusinch if the wall is made of any standard materials, such as cinderblock,concrete, wood or other material in which the wall is assembled orconstructed on the site. Further, in the course of building wallstructures, wide variations in thickness of material is employed. Forexample, walls may be constructed of thickness in the range of 4 to 8inches.

Accordingly, it is an object of this invention to provide an adjustabledoor frame which may be quickly and easily installed and which providesfor variations in thickness of the door opening naturally occurring inthe construction of the walls.

It is another object of this invention to provide an adjustable closureframe which may be quickly and easily modified in order to adapt it towidely different wall thicknesses.

Still another object of this invention is to provide a closure framewhich is simple and economical in construction and which can be quicklyand easily adjusted and assembled.

Yet a further object of this invention is to provide an improved doorframe which is relatively rigid in construction and permits support ofthe door directly upon the wall while providing a construction which isneat in appearance.

These and various other objects, features and advan- 3,420,003 PatentedJan. 7, 1969 tages of the invention will be more clearly understood froma reading of the detailed description of the invention in conjunctionwith the drawing in which:

FIGURE 1 is a view in perspective of a door frame according to thisinvention, mounted in a wall, only a fragment of which is shown;

'FIGURE 2 is a view in elevation, partly broken away and to an enlargedscale, of the portion designated by the line 2-2 in FIGURE 1 and lookingin the direction of the arrows; and

FIGURE 3 is a fragmentary view in section taken along the lines 3--3 ofFIGURE 1.

Detailed description of the invention Referring now to the drawing,FIGURE 1 is a view in perspective of one illustrative embodiment of thisinvention showing an adjustable door frame 10 installed in a wallopening of a wall 11, only a fragment of which is shown. The door frame10 comprises a plurality of backing plates or anchor plates 14, whichmay be spaced along at least one edge of the wall opening, and are alsopreferably positioned across the top of the wall opening and the distantside of the wall opening to thus provide base plates on which theremaining portions of the door frame are mounted. The remaining portionsof the door frame include an outer or outside trim strip 12 and aninside trim strip 13. The references to inside and outside being withrespect to the interior and exterior of the building, respectively. (Itis, of course, understood that this adjustable frame may be employed onthe exterior opening of a building, but is more appropriately intendedto be used in the interior of the building.) Preferably, the backing oranchor plates 14 are mounted on suitable shims 15, such that the backingplates may be positioned in a vertical plane to cause the door to hangproperly in a manner well known in the art. The backing or anchor plates14 are mounted in the door opening by driving screws 20 through the shim15 and into the wall 11. The anchor plates 14 include a series oflongitudinally extending ridges 21 which are substantially triangular incross-section and comprise a series of ratchet teeth, as viewed incross-section in FIGURE 3. The purpose of this series of ratchet teeth21 is to permit the interior trim strip 13 to be seelctively positioneduntil the trim strip engages the inner facing of the door opening 23.After the anchor plates 14 are mounted along the edge of the wallopening by means of screws 20, the outer trim strip 12 is positioned onthe backing plate and is fastened to the backing plate by means ofscrews, such as the screws 25 in FIGURE 2. Outer trim strip 12 is thenmortised at each backing or anchor plate 14 to which a hinge is to befastened. Assuming that the door 18 is to be mounted by three hinges,the trim strip 12 is mortised at each of the three backing plates shownon the left-hand side of FIG- URE 1. Each of the hinges for the door isthen mounted directly on the backing palte 14 by means of screws such asscrews 22 and is also connected directly to the backing plate by meansof metal screws 27. As shown in FIGURE 3, screws 22 are wood screwswhich are of suflicient length to extend through the backing plate 14,through the shims 15 and into the wall 11. Thus, each of the hinges willbe securely mounted upon the door facing proper rather than be mountedsolely on the trim strip or the backing plate. Thus, any torque appliedto the door 18 will be translated directly into the wall 11 through thescrews 22 rather than to the trim strip 12 or solely to the anchorplates 14.

The outer trim strip 12 includes a face portion 30 which extendsparallel through the outer face of the wall 11, and a re-entrant orhook-shaped portion 32 which terminates in an edge 33, which ispositioned contiguous the outer face of the wall 11. These portions 30and 32 f the outer trim strip cover or conceal the shims 15 and theanchor plate 14. The outer trim strips 12 also include a portion 34whichextends parallel to, and is spaced slightly from, the anchor plate14 by means of an off-set step 35. The portion 34 also rests on a step36 of the anchor plate 14 such that a space is provided between theportion 34 and the parallel segment 37 of the anchor plate 14.

The outer trim strip 12 includes a door stop portion 40 which includes asegment 42, extending perpendicularly from the portion 34 andperpendicularly away from the base plate 14. This portion 42 includes alongitudinal notch 43 into which a suitable sealing strip may beinserted. The door stop portion 40 includes a segment 44, extendingsubstantially parallel to the base plates 14, and a hooked'shaped orre-entrant portion 45, returning toward the base plate 14 andterminating in a foot portion 46, positioned to urge the trim strip 13into engagement with one of the series of ratchet teeth 21.

Inner trim strip 13 includes a hook-like portion 50 terminating in anedge 52 which is directed inwardly toward the facing 23 of the wall 11such that the outer trim strip may be moved from the position shown onthe right-hand side of FIGURE 3 in full lines to the position shown inphantom. When this movement occurs, the substantially fiat portion 55 ofthe inner trim strip 13 moves downwardly, as viewed in FIGURE 3, and theinnermost and innerfacing edge, which terminates in a ratchet-like tooth57, as viewed in section, moves between the foot 46 of the outer trimstrip 12 and the base plate 14 until the tooth 57 reaches its lowermostposition, as shown in phantom lines. Thus, the door stop portion 40engages the substantially flat surface 55 of the inner trim strip 13 andurges this trim strip into ratchet-like engagement with one of theseries of ratchet teeth 21. In the event that the particular inside trimstrip 13 is too wide for the door on which the frame is being mounted, asegment of the trim strip 13 is cut by the tradesman so that the nextadjacent tooth 58 may engage the ratchet teeth 21. Thus, it is possible,by removing a strip or a longitudinal edge portion of the trim strip 13,to adjust the door frame for wide variations in wall thickness. Further,because the backing or anchor plates 14 are spaced along the doorfacing, and because in each instance the outer trim strip is positioneduntil its inwardly directed hook 33 engages the wall 11, variations inwall thickness are accommodated. Further, because the inner trim strip13 may engage different ratchet teeth of the series 21 at the respectiveone of the difierent anchor plates 14, it is possible to adjust forvariations in wall thickness which can variably occur in the fabricationof walls.

While some illustrative embodiments of the invention have been shown anddescribed in detail, it is understood that various other embodimentscould be employed without departing from the spirit and scope of thisinvention.

What is claimed is:

1. An adjustable closure frame for a wall having an Opening including afacing comprising:

a plurality of plates spaced along at least one edge of the wallopening, each of said plates having a series of longitudinally extendingratchet teeth spaced transversely of said plates;

means securing each of said plates to said facing;

first trim means including an elongated strip extending longitudinallyof said Wall opening, secured to said plates and including a flangeportion substantially concealing said ratchet teeth;

second trim means engaging said plates and said first trim means andincluding a ratchet tooth extending longitudinally thereof and engagingone of said ratchet teeth, said flange portion of said first trim meansengaging said second trim means to urge said ratchet tooth intoengagement with one of said ratchet teeth, said first trim means beingmortised in the region of at least two of said plates; and,

a pair of door hinges mounted directly on each of said plates.

2. The frame according to claim 1 wherein said first trim means includesa door stop.

3. The frame according to claim 1 wherein said flange portion of saidfirst trim means defines a door stop.

4. The frame according to claim 1 wherein said second trim meansincludes a second tooth extending longitudinally of said trim means andspaced from said one tooth to provide an alternate engagement for saidratchet teeth when a longitudinal strip of said second trim means isremoved.

5. The combination according to claim 1 wherein fastener means extendthrough said hinges, said plates and extend into said door facing.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,629,143 2/1953 Spector et al.49-38O XR 2,826,282 3/1958 Goldberg 49-505 XR 2,860,744 11/1958 Mascari52212 3,019,868 2/1962 Truman et al. 49-504 3,324,599 6/1967 Brost49-505 KENNETH DOWNEY, Primary Examiner.

US. Cl. X.R.

